Nature and beauty amidst pollution and industrial wreckage.

A drawbridge named for a potentially intersex Polish national who fought alongside George Washington during the American Revolution, and an example of "Pulaski Red".

Site of the first pathological and bacteriological research facility in the United States.

Long the exclusive domain of birds and vagabonds, this little-known Central Park peninsula is open to the public once more.

This New Orleans statue of a portly figure in a goofy hat pays homage to a classic of satirical literature.

The South's nickname was supposedly born at a former bank in New Orleans' French Quarter.

This symbolic piece of New Orleans architecture is also home to a few ghastly stories.

The second oldest continuously operating bar in Louisiana.

A snapshot of the city's fascinating voodoo culture.

Storyville was New Orleans' historic red light district and hotbed of jazz music, sometimes referred to simply as "The District."

This "second" cemetery represents New Orleans' attempt to keep cholera at bay.

According to one local tradition, the entrance to the Voodoo underworld can be found in New Orleans through seven gates scattered throughout the city's French Quarter.

The oldest living tree in Manhattan comes shrouded in sinister legend.

Constructed from the ruins of a former glass factory, this park incorporates the old with the new.

A terrific purveyor of natural history objects and curios.

One of the deadliest American air disasters is nearly forgotten in Brooklyn.

The last remnants of what was once one of the world's grandest hotels can now be found in a Manhattan subway station.

A clock set into the concrete outside a Manhattan jeweler has been telling time underfoot for over a century.

This humble historic facade hides a history of boozing and the gentlemanly sport of rat-fighting.

During the 19th century, you could pay for violence off a prix fixe menu on this Manhattan street.

Avoid gangster interaction while window-shopping.

Built just after the American Revolution, the oldest row house in New York City still stands in Chinatown.

This iconic tattoo shop has its own onsite museum with artifacts from the early history of modern body art.

A heartbreaking monument showing the last morning in the life of Jane Griffith.